Laundry apparatus



A. i Mi Patented Aug. 4, 1953 LAUNDRY APPARATUS Charles C. Scheele, Syracuse, N. Y., assignor to Easy Washing Machine Corporation, Syracuse, N. Y., a corporation of Delaware Application July 3, 1948, Serial No. 36,912

3 Claims.

This invention relates to extractor type laundry apparatus, and more particularly to extrac tors wherein centrifugal rinsing is employed.

In an application Serial No. 775,211, filed September 20, 1947, now Patent No. 2,595,609, there is disclosed a laundry apparatus having an extractor provided with a central spray device for evenly distributing rinsing water over laundry contained within the extractor for centrifugally rinsing prior to extractor drying. The disclosure therein is a modification of the extractor drive mechanism disclosed in application Serial No. 792,363, filed December 18, 1947, now Patent No.-2,62' 7,l75. In the arrangement shown, rinsing water is directed into the spray device adjacent the extractor shaft bearing. It is es: sential in an apparatus of this type that the bearing and its lubricant be maintained separate from rinsing fluid distributed upon the washed laundry within the basket, since the slightest trace of lubricant upon the freshly laundered clothes would be highly objectionable.

It is accordingly an object of the invention to provide in an apparatus of the type described a barrier between the rinsing water and the bearmg.

Another object of the invention is to provide a barrier of the type described which is effective, economical and positive in its operation.

The above and other novel features of the invention will appear more fully hereinafter from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. It is expressly understood that the drawings are employed for purposes of illustration only and are not designed as a definition of the limits of the invention, reference being had for this purpose to theappended claims. y

In the drawing, wherein like reference characters indicate like parts:

Figure 1 is a longitudinal section through an extractor and the shaft bearing therefor; and

Figure 2 is an enlarged longitudinal sectional view of the barrier shown in Figure 1.

Referring to the drawing, there will be seen an extractor tub Hlhaving a drain outlet l2 mounted upon a central upwardly extending bearing supporting sleeve I6 projecting from a broad tub supporting shoulder, secured to or forming a part of a gear case (not shown). Within the sleeve I6 is a drive shaft l8 supporting an extractor basket 20. The drive shaft is suitably driven fromthe gear case, which also contains an end thrust bearing, all as will appear in the aforesaid application Serial No. 792,363.

The sleeve [6, which in the form shown is an integral extension of the support shoulder I4, is provided with threads as at 22, upon which is positioned a clamp nut 24. The bottom 26 of the tub is secured between the nut, 24 and shoulder l4 between gasket layers 28 and 30 forming a part of an annular gasket having a radially elongated U-section for the purpose of enclosing the inside edge of the aperture '32 in the tub bottom.

The extractor basket comprises a bottom member 34 which is integrally formed with a hub portion 36, there being provided three connecting legs 38 to form in effect a spider. The hub 36 is provided with a shaft-engaging sleeve 40 and a square socket 42 for engaging the square end 44 of the shaft It. The square socket provides a shoulder 46 engaging a complemental shoulder 48 from which the squared end 44 projects, so that the basket is held at a predetermined elevation. Around the legs 38 of the spider is secured a conical perforated distributor 50 and around the rim of the bottom 34 is secured a perforate, slightly tapered, laundry-retaining wall 52 of the extractor basket. The nut 24 has one or more upstanding jets 54 suitably provided with passages leading from the apertures 56 in the tub bottom and adapted to be connected with a source of rinse fluid by any suitable manner as, for example, disclosed in said. application Serial No. 775,211. The jets are adapted to direct a plurality of streams of rinse fluid upwardly into the cone 5!) whence such rinse water is quite evenly distributed over the length of the basket and thrown radially outward into laundry contained within the basket for rinsing suds from the laundry by centrifugalflow of rinse water therethrough.

The sleeve I6 contains a bearing sleeve 58 constituting the upper bearing for the shaft IS. The bearing sleeve projectsslightly beyond the upper end of the bearing supporting sleeve l6 and is provided with an end bearing face 60. The sleeve 58 is formed of relatively porous material such as sintered bronze, adapted to contain a quantity of lubricant in order to assure a lubricated bearing surface for the shaft 1 8. Lubricant thus contained in a porous bearing sleeve is adapted to last for a relatively long period, since normally such lubricant will not generally escape from the sleeve upwardly. However, to enhance the life of such a bearing, it is sometimes desirable to utilize one or more lubricant containing grooves, such as 62 in the exterior surface of the bearing sleeve. An excess of lubricant may cause slight amounts thereof to exude from the top end of the bearing sleeve whence it may be washed or thrown centrifugally into the lower end of the conical distributor sleeve 56, and thereafter be thrown into freshly laundered articles undergoing rinsing in the extractor basket.

In order to positively assure that any lubricant escaping in this fashion may not travel radially outward into the extractor basket, a shroud 64 is provided having a shaft-engaging collar portion 66, a tubular compression section 68 and an annular skirt or bell it, adapted to depend over the sleeve [6 to a rim ll located well below the upper end of the nozzles 54 and the bottom 3 of the basket 26. Such shroud may be formed'of resilient material such as neoprene. At the juncture between the tubular column portion 66 and the enlarged skirt [6 may be molded a bearing ring 72 which is adapted to engage the end bearing surface 66 of. the sleeve Such ring may be steel, or. graphite, as may be found desirable.

The length of the collar portion .66. and the tubular-column 68 is such thatw-hen the parts are assembled as shown in Figure 1, a certain amount of buckling or bulging of the. tubular column portion. will. take place, providing a. desired degree of compression uponthe bearing ring 12 in its bearing against the end 66 of the sleeve 53. At thesame time, the collar portion 66 visprovided with an internal diameter slightly less than the diameter .of the shaft .513, so that a tight fit be tween the collar and the shaftv is assured at all times over this section. tov prevent the travel of lubricant up the shaft it should there be any tendency for lubricant to thus rise. The column portion between the collar 66. and bearing ring 12 may be taperedslightly to provide increasing clearance around the shaft progressively from the collar portion, so that the bearing ring. may float radially to. a slight degree.

It will be seen from the foregoing that the annular skirt lilwill prevent any traces of lubricant escaping from the sleeve a frcm being emittedradially outward above that of. the bottom of the extractor basket. In fact, the structure is such as to prevent emission at any point except well below the basket bottom and the jet nozzles .54, with the result that any escaping lubricant will be flushed down the drain with centrifuged liquidand outthed-rain port i2.

The shroud may be formed of rubber, or prefer-- ably va rubber substitute such as neoprene, not afiected by oil, and. of asuitahle. resiliency to pro vide the proper end pressure described upon the end bearing ring T2. The structure, however, as. thus described positively maintains/the separation between the incoming rinse. water and any excess lubricant .so as to prevent the spotting of freshly laundered clothes undergoing rinsing and damp dry extraction in the. extractor basket. It will be seen that the skirt portion may be of metal and form a depending extension of the barrel portion 58, it being preferable that the barrel portion be of resilient substance as shown, or a structure the equivalent thereof.

Although a single embodiment of the invention has been illustrated and described, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited thereto. As various changes in the construction Y snugly positioned over .a portion of said shaft and arrangement may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention, as will be apparent to those skilled in the art, reference will be had to the appended claims for a definition of the limits of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. In a centrifugal extractor, a tub, a drive shaft and surrounding bearing sleeve projecting upwardly into said tub, a circular centrifuge basket mounted for rotation within said tub having an annular bottom disposed in spaced relation around said bearing sleeve, and a hub located within the basket above the bottom and connected to the bottom by a spider, said hub being mounted on the upper end of said shaft beyond said bearing sleeve, a central perforate sleeve in said basket surrounding said hub and spider, nozzle means laterally disposed with respect to said bearing sleeve and directing a streamof rinse water upward through said spider into said perforate sleeve for radial distribution in said basket, said. nozzle means being spaced from said bearing sleeve, and a tubular shroud between said bearing sleeve and hub, said shroud having a depending circular skirt surrounding in spaced relation said bearing sleeve and depending between said nozzle means and bearing sleeve to a point below said nozzle means and inwardly spaced therefrom.

2. A shroud for a sleeve shaft bearing. comprising a tubular sleeve portion having a collar portion at one end thereof of reduced internal diameter, to provide a resilient grip upon a shaft of a diameter slightly larger than the said internal diameter, said sleeve portion having a slightly tapered body portion with an internal diameter adapted to loosely clear a shaft of the said diameter, the clearance increasing progressively from the collar portion, and an enlarging offset adjacent the other end, said offset having molded therein an annular face bearing disk.

3. A shroud for a sleeve shaft bearing comprising a tubular sleeve portion having a. collar portion at one end thereof of reduced internal diameter, to provide a resilient grip upon a shaft of a diameter slightly larger than the said internal diameter, said sleeve portion having a slightly tapered body portion with an internal diameter adapted to loosely clear a shaft of the said diameter, the clearance increasing progressively from. the collar portion, and an enlarging offset adjacent the other end, said offset havingmolded. therein an annular face bearing disk, and a .circular bell skirt of considerably greater diameter axially extending beyond said annular disk, and adapted to freely clear a sleeve bearing fora shaft of the said diameter.

CHARLES C. SCHEELE.

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 714,007 Mittag Nov. 18, 1902 1,496,644 Karasinski June 3, 1.924 1,806,748 Edwards May 26, 1931 1,886,618 .Anstice Nov. 8, 1932 2,161,604 Watts June 6, 1939 2,221,725 Shipman Nov. 12, 1940 2,366,236 Clark Jan. 2, 194.5 

